Did a Saudi prince secretly visit Israel?

Member of Saudi royal family reportedly makes secret trip to Israel for high-level talks - despite his country's ban on Israelis.

David Rosenberg, 10/09/17 19:29

Saudi Arabia's Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

Reuters

A member of the Saudi royal family visited Israel during a secret trip last week, despite his country’s refusal to recognize the Jewish state.

According to a report by the Israel Broadcasting Corporation, a senior member of the Saudi royal family held high-level talks with Israeli officials during a clandestine trip to the Jewish state.

“A prince from the Royal Court visited the country in secret over the past few days and discussed the idea of pushing regional peace forward with a number of senior Israeli officials,” the IBC reported, citing the Russian Sputnik media outlet.

Both Israeli and Saudi foreign ministries refused to comment on the report.

The report came a day after Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu claimed that relations between Israel and the Arab world were better than ever before in Israel’s history.

“What’s happening now with the Arab bloc states has never before happened in our history – even when we signed agreements,” said Netanyahu.

“What we have now is greater than anything else during any other period in Israel’s history.”

On Sunday, the IUVM Online Arabic news outlet identified the Saudi official who reportedly visited Israel as Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, the Defense Minister of Saudi Arabia and heir apparent to the throne.

The IUVM Online report cited a United Arab Emirates intelligence officer, who claimed that bin Salman was the member of the Saudi royal family who met with Israeli officials in last week’s secret meeting.

The Emirati official claimed that the visit, which focused on plans to reboot the moribund negotiating process between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, was a result of growing pressure on the Saudi government to recognize Israel.